Volumetric MRI Differences in Treatment Naïve and Chronically Treated Adolescents With ADHD-Combined Type

Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine whether there are differences in the volume of specific brain regions using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) between children and adolescents with ADHD and controls and whether such differences are related to the participants' history of stimulant treatment. Method: A total of 16 healthy controls, 16 children, and adolescents with ADHD-combined (ADHD-C) type with a history of stimulant treatment, and 13 children and adolescents with ADHD-C type treatment naïve participated. Results: Total frontal, prefrontal, and caudate volumes were larger for children and adolescents with ADHD compared with controls with no differences based on medication history with larger right gray and white matter prefrontal volumes in the ADHD groups. A medication difference was found with the right anterior cingulate cortex smaller in children and adolescents without a treatment history. Conclusion: These findings suggest that aberrant prefrontal and caudate volumes in ADHD-C may compromise functioning of the frontostriatal circuitry.